Basketball Game Preview: Heritage Panthers vs. Rockledge Raiders

The Heritage Panthers will challenge the Rockledge Raiders at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The timing is sure in Heritage's favor as the squad sits on six straight wins at home while Rockledge has been banged up by six consecutive losses on the road.

Heritage is headed into the matchup out to prove that what happened against Sebastian River on Monday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Heritage had to suffer through a 55-28 loss at the hands of Sebastian River. The contest marked the Panthers' lowest-scoring game so far this season.

Meanwhile, it's never fun to lose, and it's even less fun to lose 62-31, which was the final score in Rockledge's tilt against Cocoa on Wednesday. The Raiders were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 36-11.

Heritage will have to contain Jordyn Bradley as she made an impact in Rockledge's last game. She posted 14 points in addition to six rebounds and three steals. Bradley has been hot for a while, having posted two or more steals the last ten times she's played. Tierra Johnson also deserves some recognition as she scored her first points of the season.

Even though they lost, Rockledge smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 11 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive boards in seven consecutive matches.

Heritage's loss dropped their record down to 16-7. As for Rockledge, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-13.

Heritage came out on top in a nail-biter against Rockledge in their previous matchup back in January of 2023, sneaking past 49-46. Does Heritage have another victory up their sleeve, or will Rockledge turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.